


One Short Day

by dragonwings948



Category: Doctor Who & Related Fandoms, Doctor Who (Big Finish Audio), Gallifrey (Big Finish Audio)
Genre: Amusement Parks, Bickering, Friendship, Humor, Only slightly shippy, Platonic Relationships, Sarcasm, Silly, Team Bonding, Team Fluff, Team as Family, it can't be a Gallifrey fic without sarcasm
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-01
Updated: 2020-11-03
Packaged: 2021-03-06 16:00:27
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 12,108
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26241541
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/dragonwings948/pseuds/dragonwings948
Summary: The Gally Gang is off to an amusement park on Earth! With only one short day to spend there, surely nothing can go wrong...
Relationships: Irving Braxiatel & Leela & Narvin & Romana II, Irving Braxiatel/Romana II, Leela (Doctor Who)/Narvin (Doctor Who)
Comments: 44
Kudos: 16





	1. Blending In

**Author's Note:**

> I'm SO excited about this fic it's ridiculous. I've always wanted to write a fic with the Gally Gang in modern day since I started listening to the series, so here it is! 
> 
> MAJOR thanks to [LadyofLothal](https://archiveofourown.org/users/LadyofLothal/pseuds/LadyofLothal) and [bravest_person_in_Wonderland](https://archiveofourown.org/users/bravest_person_in_Wonderland/pseuds/bravest_person_in_Wonderland) for brainstorming this idea with me and coming up with so many great parts of this fic! I couldn't have done this without them. :) 
> 
> Also, as far as the ships tagged: Leela/Narvin is heavily implied, Romana/Brax only lightly. 
> 
> And away we go!

“I still do not understand why we are going to this a…amoo…”

“Amusement park,” Romana sighed, feeling as if saying the words drained a little bit of her life away. As she sorted through the rack of human clothing that the CIA kept stashed for occasions much more serious than this, she paused, considered a long-sleeved shirt, and handed it over to Leela. She wrinkled her nose at the sight of the garment and Romana continued before Leela could complain.

“Apparently, Brax and Narvin made a bet which Narvin lost, and now Brax is forcing him to go to an amusement park on Earth in the early 21st century. _I’m_ going along to make sure they don’t make complete fools of themselves, and _you’re_ coming with me to keep me sane.” She passed Leela another blouse.

“I will not go dressed like _this.”_ Leela held up a rather smart-looking jumper like it was a poisonous snake and dropped it to the ground.

Romana turned on her with an aggravated huff. “Leela, I already told you, Brax insisted we go during the winter. It’s going to be cold.”

“Then give me some furs to wear.”

Romana let out a long sigh. _Rassilon, help me._ “People don’t wear furs in the 21st century—at least not like you’re thinking, and certainly not to an amusement park. We’re trying _not_ to draw attention to ourselves.”

Leela frowned. The explanation obviously hadn’t made an impression on her. But she turned her gaze to the clothes gathered in her arms and shuffled through them with an increasing look of disgust.

“Here.” Romana took the bundle from her and picked out a pair of dark grey leggings and a tunic-length maroon tank top. Some female athletes during the relevant time on Earth wore similar outfits, if she recalled correctly. If athletes could run in these clothes, then Leela could surely manage to spend a day in them. She held them out for Leela to see. “Reasonable enough?”

Leela’s gaze narrowed sceptically. “I will try them on, but I make no promises.”

“I suppose that’s all I can ask for.”

Leela took the clothes and went into a room to change while Romana picked out her own outfit. It took only a matter of minutes. Sensible trousers, simple blouse, light jumper, soft green coat…and when she saw a scarf that matched, she couldn’t resist. The whole ensemble was laid out neatly over her arm by the time Leela came back out. She wasn’t tearing the clothes to shreds out of frustration, so that was something.

In fact, as Romana studied her, she smiled. The clothes suited Leela, but at the same time gave her a completely different appearance. Her strength was still obvious—her toned arms were impossible to miss, and even the leggings couldn’t conceal the powerful muscles in her legs—but the soft clothes seemed to soften Leela’s look as well.

“Well?” Romana asked.

Leela stretched her legs, hopped from foot to foot, and shrugged. “It is not…bad. These trousers—”

“Leggings,” Romana corrected.

“These ‘leggings’ are much more sensible than all of the other Earth trousers I have worn. At least I can _move_ in these!”

“I don’t know if I’d use the word ‘sensible,’ but they definitely suit you.” She smirked as she recalled Leela telling her about the Doctor forcing her to wear jeans one time on Earth—now that, she could hardly even imagine. “I’m going to go change, and then we’ll meet Narvin and Brax on board a TARDIS.”

Romana quickly changed into her outfit. It was comfortable and snug, not that she really needed the extra layers to keep her warm. For a fleeting moment, she suddenly wondered if she’d picked up the habit of layering clothes from the Doctor when she regenerated.

Once she was finished, she led Leela to the TARDIS Bay where Braxiatel’s TARDIS already had its doors open and waiting. Brax greeted them at the console as he prepared the ship for flight. Romana wanted to take a good look around while she had the chance—it had been a while since she’d been in Brax’s TARDIS—but as soon as she saw Narvin, there was no hope for looking at anything else.

A giggle burst forth from her mouth and she promptly pressed a hand to her lips to prevent anything else undignified from coming out. The Coordinator of the CIA stood off to the side, his gaze downcast and his hands shoved in his pockets. He was dressed in blue jeans and a form-fitting dark red woollen jumper—he and Leela almost matched, Romana realised, which made it even more difficult not to laugh.

Leela, however, made no attempt to conceal her amusement. She broke into laughter and Narvin’s cheeks darkened a shade to match his jumper. He looked up and glared at Leela, his lips set in a firm line.

“I’d appreciate it if you didn’t make this any more embarrassing than it already is,” he said, his tone scathing.

“Come now, Narvin, don’t be a sore loser.” Brax grinned, obviously enjoying every second of this.

“But you look so silly!” Leela said as her laughter finally trailed off.

“I could say the same about you, savage.” Narvin seemed to be in no mood to be made fun of as he bit back, “What are you supposed to be, some sort of—”

“Enough,” Romana said in her best “Madame President” tone, intent on stopping a fight from breaking out before they even left Gallifrey. “Brax,” she said, turning to him with a pleading look, “please, let’s just get this over with.”

“Very well, my lady.” The familiar sound of the TARDIS engines filled the console room. Narvin and Leela finally broke off from their angry staring match and Romana breathed a quiet sigh. They hadn’t even reached the amusement park yet and she already felt a headache coming on.

Romana shook her head. She had a bad feeling about this.


	2. Security Check

When the TARDIS landed, Romana was a little surprised to see that Brax had actually parked them in the car park, though in a remote corner away from other vehicles. She supposed he was trying to get the full experience.

Leela frowned at the scanner. “Romana, you said this was a fun place with games.”

“We haven’t actually arrived yet,” Narvin said, using his most derisive tone. “We’re still outside.”

Ignoring Narvin’s snobbishness, Leela turned to Braxiatel. “I do not understand. If your TARDIS can go anywhere, why did you not land it inside?”

“I may be a time lord, Leela, but it doesn’t mean I have to ignore Earth customs entirely.” He reached into his pocket and pulled out a small sheaf of thin papers. As he handed one to Romana, she realised it was a ticket printed with the name “Wonderville Amusement Park” in colourful letters.

Romana refrained from asking when and how he’d gotten the tickets. Somehow, she figured she didn’t really want to know.

“Don’t lose these,” Brax instructed as he handed one to both Leela and Narvin as well.

“This allows us entry?” Leela asked, examining her ticket.

“Yes.” Brax rounded back to the console and flicked the door control. The doors whirred as they opened and he gestured outside with his arm. “After you.”

As Romana led the group out of the TARDIS, she looked up at the pale blue sky. There wasn’t a cloud in sight, and a slight chill hung in the air. She glanced back at Leela, who immediately shivered as she stepped outside. Romana refrained from muttering an “I told you so.”

“Leela, if you’re cold, I’m sure Brax has—”

“I am fine.” She straightened up and walked forward. “I do not mind the cold. It reminds me of the winters when my people would build large fires at night. We would gather together and share each other’s warmth as we slept.” There was a longing in her eyes as she looked into the distance, seeing days long past. Romana could see that Leela missed the warmth of her people, both literally and figuratively. In comparison, time lords were cold and unfeeling.

For a moment she thought she understood just how much Leela felt like an alien among them.

“Sounds ghastly,” Narvin muttered.

Leela spun on him. “If I were to bring you to my planet, Narvin, my people would leave you to die in the bitter cold.”

“Children, please,” Brax said as he walked out of the TARDIS last. The doors closed behind him. “We’re here to have fun.”

“I do not think Narvin has ever had fun.”

“No,” Narvin said drily. “Which is why this whole trip is pointless.”

Brax was completely unperturbed. He smiled and walked on ahead, spreading his arms. “This is Earth, Narvin! Only humans would create such a silly place where the only point _is_ to have fun.” He waved them all forward. “Come on. Keep up!”

Leela and Narvin were thankfully quiet as they walked past the welcome sign into Wonderville Amusement Park. They came upon a security scan before the entrance; Romana recalled that these sort of things started cropping up all over the place right around this time in Earth’s history. Leela was apprehensive of the metal detectors they were told to walk through, but after Romana, then Brax, and finally Narvin went through the “big metal things” with no problems, Leela followed.

The machine beeped as she walked through, a light on top flashing red.

“Why is the metal angry?” Leela asked.

Before Romana could respond, one of the security guards approached her with a scanning wand. Leela coiled her body and clenched her hands into fists in front of her. “Do not touch me!”

Romana heard both Brax and Narvin breathe out long, resigned sighs as she rushed over to console Leela.

“It’s all right, Leela! Just stay still. They won’t hurt you.”

Leela met her eyes and lowered her fists, though her muscles remained taught and ready to spring. The guard waved the wand over her and it beeped as it reached her waist.

“Do you have anything metal on your person, Miss?” the guard asked, seeming to just barely contain an eye roll.

Romana beat her forehead into her palm and pushed her hair back from her face. “Leela, please tell me you didn’t.”

Behind her, Brax started laughing and Narvin soon joined in. “Did she seriously bring her knife? To an _amusement park?”_

It took a while to convince Leela to pull her knife out from where it was sheathed in the waistband of her leggings, hidden by the loose hem of her tank top. It took even longer for Romana to muster her best diplomacy skills in order to convince security not to throw all of them out that instant. Brax helped too, at least, and about half an hour later they were finally getting their tickets scanned and entering the park.

“Nice work there, Madame President,” Narvin commented with a hint of amusement as he and Romana waited for Brax and Leela to be granted admission.

“Well, what’s the point of being Lord President of Gallifrey if you can’t convince a few human guards to let you into an amusement park despite the fact that one of your party was carrying a rather sharp knife?”

Narvin cracked a smile. Leela joined them, her arms crossed tightly over her chest, and was followed by Brax.

“So what do we do at this ‘amusement park?’” Leela asked with a note of bitterness, no doubt still sore from the loss of her knife.

Behind Romana came a chorus of delighted screams. She filled in the mental picture of a rollercoaster cart careening down a steep drop, but Leela, who was facing the coaster, suddenly became alert.

“Those people, they are in danger! I _knew_ I would need my knife!”

Romana turned to watch the cart flip upside down as it went through a loop. “No one is in danger, Leela.”

“It’s what humans do for fun,” Brax added. “It’s called a rollercoaster.”

Leela frowned pensively. “Rollercoaster,” she repeated softly. “How do the people remain in those little…vehicles?”

“Safety mechanisms.” Narvin looked a shade paler as he kept his eyes on the coaster. “They keep the people strapped in safely—most of the time.”

Another cart teetered over the edge of the slope and fell sharply like the last one. Suddenly, Leela seemed to understand. Her eyes lit up.

“I should like to try one of these rollercoasters.”

 _You can have fun with that,_ Romana thought to herself. She wouldn’t be caught dead on one. “You’ll get your chance, but I don’t want you wandering off on your—” Leela’s eyes looked past her and Romana spun to see Brax leading Narvin over to a hall of mirrors.

Romana shook her head and sighed. “Come on, Leela,” she said over her shoulder as she began a brisk pace to follow them. “We all need to stay together.”

Leela quickly caught up to her stride. “What is a…” She paused, her mouth moving silently as she read the sign on the building in front of them. “…hall of mirrors?”

They reached the entrance just moments after Brax and Narvin went in. “Well, it looks like you’re about to find out.”


	3. The Hall of Mirrors

The first thing Narvin noticed when he walked into the Hall of Mirrors was that there weren’t any mirrors. However, after another moment of study, he realised that they were in an entry room. A sign pointed to the entrance just ahead, though Narvin was wary of what he could see through the doorway. The lighting inside was dim, but different coloured lights flashed at regular intervals.

Braxiatel headed straight for the entrance, but Narvin held back. Beside the doorway, he noticed a plastic case that held a series of thick papers. He grabbed one and saw that it was a series of directions on how to get through the maze.

“Maze?” Narvin said. “The sign said _Hall_ of Mirrors, not _Maze.”_

Braxiatel turned and frowned at Narvin. “‘Hall of Mirrors’ is much more poetic, don’t you think?” He snatched the directions from Narvin’s hands and put the paper back with the others. “Honestly, Narvin, where’s your sense of adventure?”

“I do not think he ever had one,” said Leela with a self-satisfied smirk as she joined them with Romana at her side.

Letting Leela’s comment roll off his back, he turned to Romana. “My lady, surely _you_ agree that we should know where we’re going when we’re in there.”

Romana glanced at Braxiatel. “He does have a point, Brax.”

Braxiatel sighed.“Only children use the instructions! Please trust me, my lady.”

“But it’s a _maze!”_ Narvin protested.

“A maze?” Confusion flashed in Leela’s eyes. “But it did not say it was a maze.”

“Let’s just all trust Brax this once,” Romana said decisively. “Three time lords and a skilled warrior; we can’t get lost in a silly human maze.”

Braxiatel smiled and graciously nodded to Romana. “Thank you, my lady.”

“Let’s just get on with it.”

Braxiatel walked in first, followed by Romana, Leela, and finally, Narvin. An uneasy feeling settled in his stomach as they walked through the dark doorway. Suddenly, the colours in the room flashed to bright pink. The space widened out and Narvin stood stock still. Something like terror gripped his hearts.

The room was endless. In every direction, the four of them simply went on and on forever like infinite echoes.

 _Mirrors,_ he told himself. _They’re just mirrors._ But he couldn’t make his brain believe it, because the mirrors weren’t actually visible. Somehow, they were so clear and defined that they looked like open air.

“I do not like this place.” Leela’s voice was low with apprehension beside him.

“For once, you and I agree,” Narvin muttered.

It took a few microspans for him to settle enough to realise that the point was to get out. Over to the right was a far-off doorway where daylight filtered through. He stared hard at it. He couldn’t _see_ the reflective surface, so surely that was the right way.

“Over here!” Narvin called. He stepped forward confidently. These silly humans, thinking that they could outwit a time—

His nose and forehead crashed into a solid surface. He cried out and stepped back, rubbing his nose. He reached out slowly and flattened his palm against the mirror. But how—?

“Narvin?” Romana’s voice was behind him. “Are you all right?”

Narvin dropped his hand to his side and sniffed, spinning around like nothing had just happened. “Fine. Just…surprised.”

She raised an eyebrow. “So surprised that your nose started bleeding?”

Narvin brushed his upper lip and found blood on his fingertips. He looked over Romana’s shoulder and saw that Leela was too busy following Braxiatel to have noticed him. Well, that was one thing, at least. If Leela had seen that, she would have bothered him about it for the rest of his lives.

Romana reached into the pocket of her coat, seemed to rummage around for a moment, and produced a handkerchief. “Here,” she said, handing it to him.

He took it gratefully and held it to his nose. “Thank you, my lady.”

“Come on. We don’t want to get left behind.”

Narvin kept one arm extended in front of him and walked slowly as he followed Romana. Just as they caught up to Leela and Braxiatel, he crumpled up the handkerchief and stuffed it in his pocket.

Braxiatel paused and the other three followed suit. “This is impossible,” Narvin said with a sigh. “We should have brought the directions.” He looked back over his shoulder but saw, with horror, that the entrance was no longer visible. The lights shifted again to a threatening red. “Humans _enjoy_ this?”

Romana turned to face him, as did Leela. “Humans like to be scared, or so the Doctor told me. In my last regeneration, I swore I would do a study on why that was…”

“We could shatter the mirrors,” Leela said, the firm set of her lips removing any doubt that she was joking. “Then we would only be able to see the way out.”

Narvin chuckled, finding it preferable to dwelling on the terrifying reality around him. “That’s an idea.”

Romana looked between them. _“No._ We can’t draw any more attention to ourselves, especially after what happened on our way in.” She reached out and rapped on the nearest mirror with her knuckles. “Besides, these are probably strong enough to keep people from doing just that.”

But Narvin barely heard the last of Romana’s words, because he suddenly realised that Braxiatel was nowhere in sight.

“Where’s Braxiatel?”

Romana spun. Leela stepped forward as if to go after him, but her knee bumped into a mirror.

Romana let out a great sigh and pinched the bridge of her nose. “Rassilon, help us.”

“Braxiatel!” Leela yelled. Her voice rebounded loudly off of the mirrors.

Narvin thought he heard a faint reply, but it might have just been his imagination. Anger boiled in his gut. “When we get out of here, I’m going to—“

“There’s no use dwelling on that.” Romana straightened herself up. It was a look Narvin recognised; she was going into full presidential mode. “We’ll spread out across this area, moving along the walls. Once you find a gap in the mirrors, call out. And _don’t_ lose sight of each other.”

They started doing as Romana said, but the going was slow and there were occasional exclamations as one of them accidentally bumped into a mirror. After a little while, Narvin heard voices behind him. Soon, a group of young male humans walked past the area they were in, laughing and navigating the maze with ease.

Narvin met the eyes of Leela and Romana. Wordlessly, they followed the humans.

They were led straight through the maze and back out into the sunlight. Narvin breathed asigh of relief. “I am never doing anything like that ever again.”

“That is an evil place,” Leela hissed, glaring back at the building they had just escaped from.

“Braxiatel?” Romana said incredulously.

Narvin followed her gaze and saw Braxiatel sitting on a bench just beside the exit, an oversized bag next to him. He sat back leisurely and sipped from a large plastic cup with a straw.

“Wh—what?” Narvin spluttered, hardly unable to form a coherent thought.

“You left us in that dark place,” Leela accused, taking a challenging step towards him.

Brax stood, completely unaffected. “You were the ones who left me. I turned around and didn’t see you anywhere. I couldn’t go back or else I would have been lost myself; the only thing to do was keep moving forward.”

“It does seem rather heartless, Brax, leaving us stuck in there while you went _shopping.”_ Romana frowned at him, her arms crossed over her chest.

Braxiatel stood and held up his hands in innocence. “Forgive me, my lady. It won’t happen again. But you see, I didn’t forget about you three entirely.” He reached down into the bag and pulled out a hat. “For you, Narvin.” He tossed it over to him and Narvin caught it, frowning down at the red and blue baseball cap that read “Wonderville” and had graphics of various rollercoasters and rides on it. Narvin was about to protest, but Brax had already reached back into the bag and pulled out a brightly coloured tin that he handed to Leela.

She frowned at the tin and shook it around. “What is inside?”

“They’re called jelly beans, an Earth candy. I had a feeling you’d like them.”

Leela opened up the tin and peered inside. “Are they like the Doctor’s jelly babies?”

“Somewhat, yes.”

Leela picked out one jelly bean and popped it into her mouth. She frowned thoughtfully as she chewed, and then suddenly her eyes lit up. “Mmmm, this is good!” She scooped up a small handful more and chewed on them happily.

“Not too many at once, Leela,” Romana cautioned.

Narvin watched Braxiatel. The small smile on his face told Narvin that he knew _exactly_ what he’d done giving Leela a tin full of sugar.

Braxiatel reached into the bag once more and produced a rather nice looking fountain pen, extending it towards Romana. “And for you, my lady.”

“Playing Father Christmas today, are we?” Romana looked a little doubtful as she took the pen, but in the end she smiled. “Thank you, Brax.”

Narvin glared down at his silly hat. “Have we all just forgotten that Braxiatel left us in that maze?”

“We were never in any danger, Narvin,” said Romana. “Now come on. I’m sure we all want to see how you look in that hat.” A smile played at her lips.

Narvin looked back down at the gaudy piece of headwear. Well, he supposed it _would_ get the sun out of his eyes…

Swallowing his pride, Narvin put on the hat. Leela giggled and Romana obviously tried hard not to do the same. Braxiatel beamed. “I knew it would suit you!”

Narvin had to admit that the bit of shade it provided was nice. Of course, he’d never tell Braxiatel that.

“Thank you, Braxiatel,” he said drily.

“You’re very welcome.” Braxiatel picked up his bag and Narvin wondered what else he had bought. And even besides that, where had he gotten all the Earth currency to pay for it all?

“Can we go on one of the… _rollercoasters_ now?” Leela asked eagerly, the jelly bean tin already half empty.

Narvin bit back a groan. This was going to be a long day.


	4. The Eternity Plummet

Before Leela could grab another jelly bean, the tin was snatched from her grasp by Romana. Narvin breathed a silent sigh of relief.

Leela rounded on her. “Romana!”

Narvin wondered for a brief moment if the sugar-induced high would cause her to lash out, even though it was Romana.

"You don't need any more of those now, Leela,” Romana said gently. “You can't take them on the rollercoaster, anyway."

A chorus of screams faded in and out nearby. Narvin looked up at a towering coaster and suppressed a shudder. Humans had a very skewed idea of “fun.”

“I was thinking about that one,” Braxiatel said, pointing at the one Narvin had been staring at in horror. “It’s called ‘The Eternity Plummet.’”

Narvin scoffed. As if humans had any idea of eternity.

Romana frowned, watching Leela. “Don’t you think you should start off a bit…smaller?”

Leela crossed her arms over her chest. “You do not think I can handle it?”

“Have a little faith, Madame President. I think that Leela is more than capable of surviving a rollercoaster.”

Romana breathed out a sigh. “Fine, but don't say I didn't warn you.”

Romana made her intention not to join them very clear, though Leela asked her to come. Braxiatel flattered his way into getting Romana to watch his bag of souvenirs while he was on the coaster with Leela. They agreed to meet back up by one of the food stalls near the coaster.

"Coming, Narvin?" Braxiatel asked after everything was settled.

Narvin chuckled and shook his head. "Oh, no. I'm not going on one of those death traps."

“Narvin!” Leela complained. "You are a coward. Come with us!"

"You really should at least try and have fun," Braxiatel added.

"No one seemed to call Romana a coward when she said she'd stay.” He snapped his mouth shut quickly, realising what he’d said far too late.

Braxiatel raised an eyebrow. "I'd like to see you try to call our Lady High President a coward.”

Romana crossed her arms and trained a hard stare on Narvin, as if simply daring him to say more. Maybe going on a rollercoaster would be preferable to staying with Romana after all.

“I—I didn’t mean—” But a quirk of Romana’s eyebrow told him that every word he said just dug a deeper hole. He sighed. “All right, I’ll come.”

Leela grinned. Braxiatel smirked. Narvin knew he was going to regret this.

After one last brief lecture from Romana on staying together and being careful, they left her and followed Braxiatel down a concrete path. Narvin looked around him and, for a moment, sincerely tried to appreciate the culture.

But the greasy smells wafting to his nose only served to make him a tiny bit nauseous. Above the screams coming from the various thriller rides were the cries of needy children and the calls of portly men trying to entice people to play their cheap games. Narvin tried to block it all out without success. Oh, for a moment of peace and quiet.

They reached the entrance of the coaster and Narvin saw the number twenty posted on a sign beside it. It only took him a moment to figure what it meant and he planted his feet.

"You expect me to waste twenty minutes of my life standing in a queue for a stupid ride?"

"Relax, Narvin.” Braxiatel gave him a pat on the back, urging him on. “It's all part of the experience.”

Leela had already run ahead of them into the line. Narvin decided he had no choice but to hurry and catch up with her; who knew what damage she could do unsupervised, especially after consuming so much sugar?

“You just _had_ to give her that candy, didn’t you?” Narvin grumbled as he strode side by side with Braxiatel.

“Ah, of course, in your mind I always have some sort of nefarious scheme to carry out. Did it ever occur to you that maybe I genuinely thought of Leela when I saw those jelly beans? How often do you think she has the occasion to eat such treats on Gallifrey?”

Narvin didn’t answer for a moment. Was Braxiatel really trying to get him to believe that he had truly given them gifts out of the goodness of his hearts? “Never, of course.”

“Precisely. You deride her because she’s human, and yet at the same time, you forget she’s not a time lord. These may not be her people, but Earth is much closer to home for her than Gallifrey ever was. Let her live like a human just for today.”

And with that, they caught up with Leela, who thankfully hadn’t reached the queue yet or else Narvin thought she might have started shoving people out of the way. Yet as he looked at her, he secretly wondered if Braxiatel was right. How much did she miss with every day that passed on Gallifrey? Narvin had never even thought about putting himself in her place. He considered what it would be like being stuck here on Earth for the rest of his lives and thought of all the small things he’d miss about Gallifrey. The smell of the corridors in the heart of the Capitol, the way the doors whirred as they opened, all of the long and drawn out ceremonies that he outwardly detested but secretly couldn’t live without…

What did Leela miss about her home?

He suddenly became aware of Braxiatel’s voice monologuing with gusto and realised that they had come to a stop at the end of the line. Braxiatel was explaining the origins of rollercoasters to Leela, who was listening with wide-eyed fascination. She stood on her toes, minutely bouncing like she couldn’t stay still even while enthralled by Braxiatel’s tale.

Despite Braxiatel’s doubtful story of genuine care for Leela, Narvin still had a feeling that they would all regret Leela’s sugar rush by the end of the day.

Thankfully the wait was closer to ten minutes than twenty, and it wasn’t long before they entered the loading area. Fear twisted Narvin’s gut as he looked at the tiny carts and the hefty restraints. Why in the name of Rassilon had he agreed to this?

As they reached the end of the queue, Braxiatel switched places with Narvin before he knew what was happening and an attendant urged him in the front row next to Leela. Narvin blinked and stood stock still for a moment, trying to make sense of what had happened, and then cast a glare at Braxiatel, who was getting into the second row. He seemed to purposefully avoid Narvin’s gaze.

Grumbling under his breath, Narvin reluctantly got in beside Leela and buckled himself in. An attendant pushed a restraint over his head that covered his chest and shoulders. He heard a distinct click as it locked into place and he swallowed hard. There was no going back now.

He glanced over at Leela to see her frowning as she pushed experimentally against the restraint. “I do not like this.”

“It’s all right,” Narvin said, though if he was being truthful, he was probably much more scared than Leela was. “It’s just to hold you in.”

“It won’t last long, Leela,” Braxiatel added behind them. “These rides usually only go on for a minute or two.”

Before any more words could be said, the coaster suddenly started forward at a slow crawl. Narvin noticed a handhold by his side and gripped it tightly. It didn’t take long for the ride to pick up speed and begin careening around corners. Leela grinned and laughed with excitement as her hair whipped all around, some of the longer strands tickling Narvin’s cheeks. He had to admit that the speed _was_ rather thrilling, and he was starting to think that rollercoasters might not be that bad.

Until the cart started to climb.

Narvin looked ahead in horror. He could see the drop that awaited them. _The Eternity Plummet._

His mind went into a panic. He knew he had to escape, but as he looked around, all he could see was the entire amusement park laid before him in miniature. He thought of one thousand different scenarios where the restraints gave out, another couple thousand where the cart flew off the track, and another several hundred where he was sick all over everything.

In none of the scenarios did he get out of this without regenerating or being so embarrassed that he’d probably regenerate anyway.

His lives flashed before his eyes as the cart clicked slowly toward the crest of the hill. This was it.

They reached the top. The cart creaked. Beside him, he heard Leela’s breath catch. For his own part, he was fairly sure he’d stopped breathing several nanospans ago.

And then they plunged.

Suddenly Narvin had lungfuls of air, enough to scream without stopping as they plummeted down the seemingly endless drop. He was vaguely aware of Leela laughing so hard she snorted, but mostly he was concerned with the fact that his internal organs seemed to be switching places inside of him.

As the cart finally reached the bottom of the drop he could hardly even catch a breath before the cart tore upwards into a loop that made his stomach flip upside down.

That was it. He was _definitely_ going to be sick.

The rest of the ride was a blur of screaming and desperately trying to hold back his nausea. By the time the ride finally, mercifully, slowed down and came to a stop, his throat was raw and he had to swallow back bile. He didn’t even move as the restraint lifted. He wasn’t sure if he would ever move again.

"That was amazing!” he heard Leela exclaim. For some reason, her voice sounded far away. “It was…it was like nothing I have ever felt before!”

Narvin blinked, coming to grips enough to watch Braxiatel smooth his hair back into orderly perfection. "Yes, I've always enjoyed them myself.” His gaze swept to Narvin and his eyes widened, though a smile twitched at his lips. “Narvin!” he said, half with concern and half with amusement.

Leela met his eyes, and to her credit, a flash of genuine worry crossed her expression. She rushed back over to help him, but Narvin finally got ahold of himself and decided to retain whatever dignity he had left by standing up and stumbling out of the cart…into Leela’s arms.

So much for dignity.

"Oh, Narvin.”

He didn’t have the willpower to protest as she helped him walk into the awaiting gift shop. Braxiatel held the door open for them, his body trembling like he was barely holding in laughter.

“Your stomach is even weaker than I thought,” Leela said.

“That doesn't really—" His stomach suddenly roiled again and he let out a weak groan. "I think I'm going to be sick."

Braxiatel neatly stepped out of his way. "You two go on ahead and find Romana. I'll bring you something to help with the nausea, Narvin."

He mumbled a half-hearted thanks, though he didn’t believe him for a second. He found himself too concentrated on not being sick everywhere to mind that Leela was basically holding him up as they walked out of the gift shop and back outside. The breath of fresh air calmed his stomach for a moment and he straightened himself up, stepping out of Leela’s grasp. The last thing he needed was for Romana to see this humiliation too.

She was waiting just where she’d said she’d be, sitting at a picnic table beside a food stall just outside the gift shop. Despite the fact that Narvin tried his best to walk normally as they approached her, Romana’s smile shifted into a smirk.

"Too much for you, Narvin? You look pale as a sheet.”

"You should have heard him,” Leela said. “He screamed like a child!”

Narvin felt his cheeks grow hot, which really didn’t help his upset stomach or the headache that was starting to form.

Romana chuckled. "Oh, I have no doubt.”

He couldn’t think of any clever defences with his entire body revolting against him, so he simply sat down hard on one of the table’s benches and crossed his arms over his chest, battling the sick feeling.

“Where’s Brax?” asked Romana. “Did he abandon us again?”

"He said he would bring something to help Narvin."

Narvin rubbed his hands over his face and let out a long sigh. He wasn’t sure if anything could help him now other than being back on Gallifrey and taking a very long nap.

“Please,” he sighed, “remind me to never do that again.”


	5. Food

Braxiatel rejoined his party in exactly the state he’d expected them to be in: Narvin holding his head in his hands, looking a little green, and Romana and Leela completely unconcerned and idly chatting. When Brax arrived, everyone looked up. Romana frowned. Leela grinned, her eyes roaming over the various food items he’d brought along as he set them on the picnic table. Narvin managed to look even worse when he met Braxiatel’s eyes.

“Here you are, Narvin.” Brax placed a large paper cup full of Coke in front of him.

Narvin opened up the lid and peered inside, a deep frown etched into his face. “What is this?”

“Soda. Trust me, it will help.” He purposefully _didn’t_ tell him what to expect when he took his first sip.

Narvin slurped up a bit though the straw and immediately drew back with something that sounded like “Gah!” His nostrils flared with distaste and he smacked his lips. “Braxiatel, are you trying to poison me?”

Brax rolled his eyes but didn’t reply. He could have done _that_ a long time ago.

“That’s quite a spread, Brax,” Romana commented, nodding at all the food.

“What’s a visit to an amusement park if you don’t try the food?” He watched as Leela eyed the turkey leg he’d brought, her eyes growing ever wider. “Leela, I thought you might—” Before he could even finish, Leela snatched it and took a huge bite, chewing gleefully.

“This is very good!” she mumbled over a mouthful.

 _Hm,_ Brax thought. _Perhaps the jelly beans were a step too far._

He left Leela to her turkey leg and offered Romana a churro. “Have you ever had one?”

“No,” Romana said with a chuckle. “What is it?”

“A churro. Essentially, fried dough with cinnamon and sugar.”

Narvin made a vaguely disgusted noise, but when Brax looked over he was idly sipping on the Coke.

Romana took the churro, gave a small shrug, and took a bite. She smiled as she chewed, dusting the excess cinnamon and sugar from her lips. “It is very good,” she said, handing the rest of the churro back.

Brax raised his eyebrows. “Are you sure? You can have as much as you’d like.”

“Thank you, Brax, but I’m not sure how much this Earth food would agree with me.”

Brax chuckled. “Fair enough.”

Leela reached out and grabbed the rest of the churro instead, ripping off a chunk with vigour. She looked quite formidable with a churro in one hand and a turkey leg in the other. Maybe he should encourage her to take a break…

“You might not want to eat so much food if you’re wanting to ride another rollercoaster, Leela,” Narvin said. He took another sip of his drink and there was a slurping sound as it was completely empty.

“Ah, so you enjoyed your soda then, Narvin?” Brax asked, unable to keep a smirk from his face.

“Adequate,” Narvin mumbled, trying his best to look as unimpressed as possible. “But I’ll admit, I do feel a little better.”

“Hungry?” Brax asked, gesturing to another churro and a large box of popcorn. He knew full well that Narvin wouldn’t want any of it in his current state.

Narvin shook his head. Leela, however, grabbed a handful of popcorn. Her churro was gone,her turkey leg half-eaten.

Narvin raised an eyebrow at her. “Don’t say I didn’t try to warn you.”

Brax took a few pieces of popcorn and chewed on them thoughtfully. Narvin _was_ right; the last thing he wanted was a sick Leela on his hands. “Not to worry, Narvin. I think we’ll try for some games next. Something easy for you.” He put on his brightest grin.

Narvin glared at him.

“Boys,” Romana warned, of course picking up on the unspoken tension.

“Narvin _is_ the reason why we’re here,” Brax reminded her.

A small smile touched her lips. “I am interested as to what exactly your little bet was.”

Narvin’s cheeks coloured and he tried to get another slurp out of his drink (without success). “It’s not important,” he muttered, pointedly avoiding Romana’s gaze.

“I think it’s best left between Narvin and me,” Brax agreed. He doubted Romana would appreciate—

“Was it a fight?” Leela asked, swallowing another bite of turkey leg. “It would be amusing to watch Narvin try to fight,” she said with just the slightest emphasis on “try.”

Narvin’s face reddened even further and his fingers tightened around his cup. Brax considered warning him, but just as he made up his mind not to, it was too late anyway. The plastic lid burst off the cup, causing Narvin to fall backwards and nearly tumble onto the ground as he uttered a terrified cry. His crushed cup tipped over and ice spilt all over the table.

There was a moment of silence before Brax started laughing in sync with Leela and Romana.

Narvin’s face was as red as a cherry by the time he righted himself. His eyes were dark, however, and his eyebrows were drawn together in anger. He shot to his feet.

“Bet or not, I won’t stay here to be constantly humiliated!” And with that, he stalked off, shoving his hands deep into his pockets.

Leela’s laughter subsided and a worried crease appeared on her forehead. She looked after Narvin and frowned.

Brax smiled to himself. _I do believe I’m right about those two._

Leela asked Romana for the jelly bean tin and Romana gave it up without question. Leela then jogged after Narvin, calling his name.

 _I’m_ definitely _right about those two._

“So much for staying together, then,” Romana sighed.

“They’ll be fine. Narvin won’t let Leela get into any trouble. In the meantime, shall we enjoy the peace and quiet and browse the carnival games?”

Romana still smiled, but her gaze narrowed. “Why do I get the sense you have a trick up your sleeve?”

“Madame President,” Brax said with a smile, “trust me.”


	6. It's All Fun and Games...

"Narvin!"

Leela cursed the cushioned shoes her feet were stuck inside. Without them, she could have caught up with Narvin sooner, but he wasn't walking quickly in any case.

"Narvin, do not go,” Leela said as she approached him.

He suddenly stopped and turned on her. "Why not? If I had the key to Braxiatel’s TARDIS, I'd go back to Gallifrey right now.” His expression slackened and his eyes darted around. Leela saw that people were watching them after Narvin’s outburst.

"You would leave your president here?" Leela asked.

Narvin opened his mouth, then closed it. His shoulders slumped. "No, of course not."

As much as Leela disliked Narvin’s constant tone of complaint and the way he derided her constantly, he had gone through quite a bit of embarrassment in the past half hour. She would be angry too if everyone were treating her in such a way.

Leela held out the jellybean tin towards him. "Try one."

Narvin frowned. He blinked at the tin, then glanced back up at Leela. "A piece of candy isn't going to help me. Besides, my stomach is volatile enough as it is,” he muttered.

"Just one," Leela insisted.

Narvin sighed and reached in to grab a red one. He popped it in his mouth, chewed, and then looked very confused. He raised his eyebrows at Leela. She nodded and pressed the tin into his hands. Narvin took a couple more jellybeans and chewed on them carefully, one at a time.

"These aren't nearly as bad as I thought they'd be." He took a few more before giving the tin back, avoiding Leela’s eyes as he muttered, "Thank you."

Leela took a few more herself before capping the container. "What should we do next? Another rollercoaster?"

Narvin’s face got a shade paler and Leela laughed. "I am not serious, Narvin."

"That's a relief." He looked around, then gestured to an area close by that was positioned at the edge of a small man-made lake. "What about those games? You can let off some energy at least.”

“What are these games?" Leela asked as they walked that way. "Do they involve combat?"

“No, they're supposed to be about skill. I'll show you."

Narvin walked up to a booth and showed a man his ticket, which apparently allowed him to play an unlimited amount of the carnival-like games. Meanwhile, Leela studied the game. A series of bottles were lined up and stacked on top of each other. The biggest bottle read “prize” on it. Leela wondered what sort of prizes you could win.

"This is how it's done," Narvin said, bringing her attention back to him. He was given a ball, which he tossed in the air a couple times like he was testing its weight. He brought his arm back, paused, and then executed a fairly good throw that knocked all the bottles over but the biggest one.

“Aw, better try again," the man at the booth said, setting the formation back up.

“You have a weak arm, Narvin,” Leela said with a chuckle.

“I just need to get warmed up.” He got another ball, but this throw was even worse than the last. Narvin grunted in frustration.

"Let me try,” Leela said. After showing the man her ticket, he gave her a ball, too. She held it for a moment, calculating how hard she needed to throw it. Finally, she hurled it into the bottles. Just like Narvin’s first try, everything toppled but the prize bottle.

"How did that happen?" Leela asked, eyeing the man suspiciously. "The big one should have fallen."

"Having some trouble?"

Leela turned at the sound of Braxiatel’s voice and found him standing behind her with Romana at his side."I do not think this game is fair,” Leela explained, making her voice loud enough so the man who ran the game was sure to hear.

Braxiatel spoke to the man with a smile and was offered a ball. “It just takes precise skill, Leela.” He stood very still for a long moment and suddenly threw the ball quickly. It only glanced off the big bottle, but somehow it fell. Even the man running the booth looked surprised.

Braxiatel smirked.

"How did you—?" Narvin began to ask, then seemed to think better of it. Braxiatel was given a prize in the form of a stuffed bear, though Leela wasn’t quite sure if it really _was_ a bear. It didn’t look nearly as menacing as a bear should. Was that really the prize?

Yet, Braxiatel took it with an air of dignity and immediately turned to offer it to Romana. "For you, my lady."

Romana chuckled. "Well, after so much effort was put into the winning, I could hardly refuse.”

It didn’t matter that the prize was so ridiculous; Leela wouldn’t let Braxiatel best her. "I will try again.” She got another ball and tried to copy Braxiatel’s throw, but she had no luck. The game’s overseer, who was watching her with a disinterested air, shrugged.

Leela had had enough.

She grabbed the man by the collar. "Tell me what you have done to this game."

Several hands grabbed her at once, pulling her off the man. He stared at her wide-eyed, his mouth hanging open slightly.

"I apologise for my friend," Romana said in her best diplomatic voice as she stepped forward. "Are you hurt?"

The man shook his head, still staring unblinkingly at Leela. She didn't look away from him.

"I'm glad to hear it. We understand that your business requires some…nuances in these games. Leela isn’t quite used to that, but she’s very sorry for startling you.”

“No, I am—” Braxiatel slapped a hand over her mouth. Leela yelled a muffled cry in protest, but before she could bite him, he grabbed her shoulder and turned her away from the game. She swung her elbow back, intent on hitting him, but Braxiatel neatly dodged her blow and finally let her go.

Leela growled, reaching for her knife before she realised it wasn’t there. She uttered another cry of frustration. “Do not touch me!” she said heatedly, glaring at Braxiatel. “That man did not deserve my apology. He is a thief.”

Braxiatel looked entirely unthreatened, which only made the anger rise in Leela until she was clenching her hands into fists. “Calm down, Leela. I’m only trying to keep us from getting thrown out of this park, _again.”_

“What a pity you stopped her,” Narvin sighed as he followed them. Romana joined them last, focusing a disapproving frown onto Leela.

“Leela—”

“Do not waste your words on me. I should not have let that man go. Narvin and I will find our own games where we do not need to _cheat_ to win.” She levelled a glare at Braxiatel and then walked off. After several beats of silence, she heard Narvin’s footsteps following her.

Narvin’s manner was a little softer after that, as if he was expecting to upset her with every word. He suggested a game where people were throwing balls into a hoop; that seemed simple enough. Narvin played first and won, seeming surprised when the owner of this stall, a much nicer man, handed him a little stuffed dog with floppy ears. Narvin coloured as he excepted it.

"Narvin, you have won!” Leela said. “You should be proud of it."

"What am I going to do with this?" he asked, holding up the dog.

"It can be your K-9,” Leela said with a laugh.

Narvin rolled his eyes. "I never did like dogs. Here." He held it out to her, not quite meeting her eyes. "You have it."

"But it is _your_ prize!"

"Yes, which means I can do what I like with it."

Leela took it into her hands. Its fur was soft and it stared up at her with big blue glass eyes. She chuckled. "You have the same eyes," she said, holding it up to Narvin’s face.

Narvin shook his head. Leela played next and also won, earning the prize of a stuffed parrot. Leela carried away her winnings with pride and decided along with Narvin that they’d had enough of the games. They walked towards the area’s exit, but in doing so had to pass the first game they’d played. Leela pointedly turned her gaze away, but she couldn’t help but see a little boy being led away from the game and crying. The evil man was standing by with a smirk on his face.

Leela readied herself to run at the man, but Narvin must have seen her expression because he stood in front of her and blocked her way. "He's not worth it, Leela.”

"He has enjoyed making that child cry."

The little boy pointed back towards the toys hanging up in the booth as his mother pulled him away. Leela looked down at the stuffed toys in her hands. She walked away from Narvin and he started to protest, but stopped. Leela approached the boy and crouched down to speak to him.

"That is not a good game," Leela told him. "You should find another. But until you do…” She offered him her stuffed parrot.

The boy stopped crying immediately. He took the plush slowly from Leela's hand like he was expecting it to be a joke. He then hugged it to his chest and looked down.

His mother met Leela’s eyes and smiled. "Thank you."

Leela nodded and went back to Narvin, who was staring at her with his mouth open.

“Why do you look at me in such a way?" she asked. "It was my prize to do with what I liked."

"Of course.” Narvin paused. “Why didn't you give him the dog?"

Leela held up the fluffy little dog. "It was a gift. That is different."

Narvin didn’t reply. He cleared his throat and his gaze roamed around the area. "I don't see Romana or Braxiatel."

"Then we will find them later.” She still hadn’t forgiven Braxiatel for restraining her and doubted that she would for a long time yet.

“Well, then…what should we do?”

Leela met his eyes. She thought back through the day and it struck her that Narvin hadn’t been happy once. “What would you like to do?"

He blinked at her. "Well, er…I don't know."

"Then we will find something. Come.”


	7. Lazy Afternoons

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you understand the title of this chapter, I love you. If not, I love you anyway XD

“I don’t see them anywhere,” Romana said with a huff as she sat down on a bench beside Braxiatel.

Brax cast his gaze over the area once more, but he had a feeling Leela and Narvin must have left several minutes ago. “They’ll be fine on their own, Madame President. How much harm could they really do?”

Romana gave him a look. That had been the wrong thing to say.

He continued, “Narvin is sensible—sometimes.”

Romana scoffed. “Sensibility isn’t enough to stop Leela when she’s determined.”

“My lady,” Brax began in a deferential but firm tone, “you’ve spent the whole day worrying about everyone else. Let time run its course. Soon enough Leela and Narvin will find us again and we’ll all go back home.”

Romana sighed. “You’re right.” She looked around and a smile twitched at her lips. “You know, I’ve missed Earth, in a way. The Doctor took me here so often.”

“Humans are ludicrously creative, to a fault.” He took a moment to once again appreciate the incredible feats of architecture around him that were purely meant for _fun._ “They’re so reliant on their emotions that it gets them into all sorts of trouble—but it’s also how they create such remarkable beauty.”

Romana chuckled. “You sound like the Doctor when you talk like that.”

Brax winced. “Perish the thought,” he muttered. Before he could even consider the implications of her comment, he noticed a cart approaching, being pulled by a woman on a bicycle. On display were bags of candy floss in all sorts of bright colours. Brax stood and stopped the woman, paying her enough for five bags when he only took one.

Romana was watching him with a curious smile as he turned around and opened up the bag. He rarely ever saw that smile anymore. He wondered if this what she had looked like all the time while travelling with the Doctor—so much happier and carefree. Maintaining the role of President had aged and matured her immensely, not to mention what she’d endured at the hands of the Daleks.

All in all, it was good to think that he could bring back a part of that younger Romana, even just for a moment.

He held out the bag towards her as he sat back down. “You should try it. It really is amazing.”

She hesitated. Brax only just stopped himself from chuckling at the thought of how much the members of the High Council would blanch if they knew that Gallifrey’s Lady President was about to eat candy floss.

Finally, Romana pinched off a bit of fluff and placed it in her mouth. Her eyes widened and she blinked in surprise.

“That is quite extraordinary,” she said once she’d swallowed. “The science involved must be quite interesting.”

Brax smiled as he took his own piece of candy floss. Only Romana would think of science while eating candy.

“It just proves what I said about humans,” he said, waving a hand before him. “Our people could never create something like this.”

“There is something wonderful about it, isn’t there?” She focused her gaze on him. “Thank you for bringing us here. I’ll admit that I was sceptical at first, but I think a short break from Gallifrey was just what we all needed. Even Narvin and Leela must be mellowing out if they’re truly tolerating each other so much.”

Braxiatel hummed in agreement. “What do you say we try our hands at a few more games?”

Romana held up the stuffed bear he’d given her and chuckled. “Only if it doesn’t leave us going home with a TARDIS full of these.”

* * *

Leela could hardly believe her ears when Narvin said they should go on another rollercoaster.

They had spent a considerable amount of time walking around the park and simply looking at everything, occasionally stopping when something interesting caught their eye. They’d seen a few acrobats perform and had found some standalone games that they’d played. They’d gone on a “ride” that had bored Leela; it hadn’t moved fast at all, but had simply trailed slowly through a dark building while detailing some kind of historical event. As they walked off that ride, she’d found herself looking longingly at a rollercoaster when Narvin spoke.

She ran his words through her head again. Yes, he’d _really_ said them.

“Maybe one without those awful loops?” he requested.

“Are you sure, Narvin? We can always find something else.”

He shrugged. “We’ve been across this entire park. The speed on that rollercoaster was rather enjoyable; it was everything afterwards that I didn’t like.”

So they walked a little ways and found a coaster that advertised high speeds but only had a small drop and no loops. Leela cast a glance at Narvin outside the ride. He didn’t even hesitate, but strode straight into the queue. Leela followed after him, wondering why he was so determined.

They came to a place where they had to wait several minutes and Leela found she didn’t know what to say to Narvin. They had never been alone together in anything but an official capacity. She had come to tolerate him, but they weren’t friends. And yet…she had a feeling that a big part of him coming on this ride was to humour her. She looked down at where she still clutched the little stuffed dog in her hand.

Maybe he wasn’t all that bad.

“I’m curious,” Narvin said, breaking the silence. “Why did you come after me earlier, before the games?”

Leela frowned. It hadn’t been a thoughtful choice, but more like an instinct. “I do not like…bullies,” she said, remembering how the Doctor had taught her that word. “Braxiatel has been trying to humiliate you all day. We have never seen eye to eye, Narvin, but it does not mean you deserve to be treated in such a way.”

He blinked. “Oh. Well…thank you, I suppose.” He fidgeted like he wasn’t quite used to offering thanks.

“You are welcome.”

Suddenly, Narvin looked past her, over her shoulder. A troubled look came over his face. He met Leela’s eyes again. “Swap places with me,” he said in a low voice.

“What?”

Narvin sighed. “Please, can you just listen for once? Stand where I’m standing right now.”

“Are we in danger?”

“No! Leela, please.”

His eyes were wide with earnestness so she agreed. They switched places so that now Leela was facing the people ahead of them in the queue and Narvin’s back was to them.

“Now will you tell me why?”

He pressed his mouth into a thin line. “Just trust me this once.”

She studied his face, trying to find a clue. She remembered how he’d looked over her shoulder when he’d been standing in this same spot. As Narvin’s gaze drifted off to the side, Leela took the chance to look around Narvin and see a group of young men laughing loudly not too far away from them, glancing at Narvin from time to time. One of them caught her eye and grinned wolfishly.

She sneered back at him.

Narvin caught her looking. His cheeks reddened a little and he stared at the ground, shoving his hands in his pockets. She found it amusing, even possibly… _endearing_ that he wouldn’t admit he’d been trying to protect her in such a small way. Perhaps it was because he knew that she could protect herself much better than he ever could, or that he didn’t want to admit that he cared.

But, surprisingly, he did. It had been a noble gesture, and one she wouldn’t have suspected of him.

“Today, I am seeing that there is more to you than I thought, Narvin,” she said softly, more to herself but not minding if she was heard.

They didn’t speak for the rest of the short wait until Leela was getting into a small cart beside Narvin. He clutched the handlebar in front of him, his face already white.

“I’m beginning to regret this,” he muttered.

“Do not worry. You will have fun this time.”

He tried to laugh, but it sounded rather panicked. “I thought we’d already established that I don’t know how to have fun.”

“I was wrong,” Leela said.

The cart lurched forward and Narvin’s breath caught. Leela put her hand on top of his and squeezed. “Be brave, Narvin.”


	8. Fireworks

After riding the rollercoaster three times, Narvin’s stomach began to protest, though not as bad as last time. He had actually thoroughly enjoyed this coaster. The high speeds had sent a thrill of adrenaline through him without all of those ridiculous drops and flips that sent his insides spinning.

Only a few precious rays of sunlight were left by the time he and Leela walked off the ride the final time. Leela looked over at him and laughed. “I have never seen your hair like that!”

Horrified, he quickly smoothed down his hair and cleared his throat. He was about to then make a derogatory comment about her own windswept hair, but just then she crossed her arms and shivered.

Narvin hadn’t even noticed, but as darkness had fallen, the temperature had dropped. In her barely existent clothing, she had to be freezing.

“We should go find Braxiatel and Romana,” he said. “We’ll probably be leaving soon.”

Leela agreed. As they walked, Leela stayed close to him though he knew he didn’t put out any body heat. Her arms were wound tightly around herself. Narvin suddenly realised that he was wearing two layers, the topmost being his jumper, even though the cold didn’t affect him much. It would cost him absolutely nothing to loan her his extra layer of clothing, and yet he shied away from the thought. First of all, he'd never even _think_ about taking off the jumper in public; it would just be too humiliating. Even if he did somehow get that far, the situation would get worse when they found Braxiatel and Romana. Braxiatel was sure to laugh at him. Romana would ask questions. Leela might read into the gesture too much; didn’t humans tend to do that? And he’d be left with only a single layer, something he didn’t relish the thought of. He’d already been nice enough to Leela today. It didn’t really matter, did it?

Another shudder passed through Leela’s frame, yet she didn’t complain. Narvin nearly groaned with annoyance at his own indecision. Why did he suddenly _care_ so much? What was happening to him? Maybe working with Romana had changed him more than he’d thought…

Just as they walked right past the toilets, Narvin finally made his choice. He told Leela to wait and went into the men’s section, hastily locking himself into a stall and trying not to think about how the smell said quite a lot about how often this area was cleaned. Before he lost his nerve, he pulled off his jumper and laid it over his arm. He walked out of the stall and looked at himself in the mirror on the opposite wall. He winced at the image of himself in a thin long-sleeved shirt but told himself that the park had to be closing soon and they’d probably be going home within an Earth hour.

 _Why am I doing this?_ he asked himself. It could only be because Leela had gone out of her way for him earlier, despite the fact that she didn’t even like him. He was grateful. That was all this was.

Entirely convinced, Narvin met Leela back outside and handed her the jumper. “Here, you should wear this.” Feeling like he needed to give her some sort of explanation he added, “I’ve heard that humans’ constitutions are delicate and we can’t have you getting sick at a time like this.”

Leela trained a hard frown on him. “I am not delicate.”

Why had he even tried? “Fine,” he huffed, “I was only trying to be nice.” He was prepared to pull it back on before Leela held out a hand. Her gaze wandered over him and he felt the urge to cross his arms over his chest. She met his eyes and the angry wrinkles on her forehead smoothed out.

“I will take it,” she said gently, “but not because I am too cold.”

He handed it to her wordlessly. Maybe she’d somehow realised the intense personal struggle he’d just been through for such a trivial thing, or maybe she was just that cold. Either way, she pulled it on easily. It was a little big on her, but somehow it was a very fitting look. In fact, she looked much better in it than he had.

Narvin cleared his throat as he realised he’d been staring at her for too long. “Better?”

“Yes.” She smiled. “Thank you, Narvin.”

He almost smiled back. _Almost._ He’d never really noticed before, but she had quite a brilliant smile.

He blinked, coming back to reality. “Well, we should get going.”

They went on walking through the park and Narvin forgot all about his embarrassment as he tried to ignore the fact that his hearts were drumming in his ears.

* * *

An announcement came over the park speakers saying that they’d be closing in forty-five minutes but there would be a fireworks display first.

Romana looked out onto the dark water of the man-made lake and saw the fireworks being prepared on a small island in the centre. As the lights in the park dimmed, the moonlight gave off just enough of a glow to see by. Most of the small crowds were heading towards the exit, but others crowded around the railing that surrounded the lake. Brax had led Romana to “the perfect spot,” in his words, half an hour ago. Romana had to admit that they had a clear view of the entire lake with the rest of the park stretching out beyond.

With twilight falling over the world, the scene was rather beautiful. It had been quite a while since she’d seen a real night sky from anywhere but her window.

In a way, she almost didn’t want to leave this place.

Romana sighed and glanced around as she’d been doing periodically ever since Leela and Narvin had left them hours ago. “I should go look for them,” she said.

“But you’ll miss the fireworks!” Brax protested. “That’s half the fun of coming to these places. I’ve heard this one has a spectacular show. Leela and Narvin will turn up.”

Romana frowned. He’d been saying that all day, and still she hadn’t seen head nor tail of them.

“Romana!”

Relief flooded through Romana at the sound of Leela’s voice. She turned, about to express how glad she was to see her safe, but she stopped short at the sight of Narvin’s jumper hanging loosely around Leela’s frame. Narvin stood just behind her, wearing a thin white shirt and looking extremely uncomfortable about it.

So many thoughts ran through Romana’s mind, but none of them could make sense of the sight before her.

“Leela was cold,” Narvin said quickly, not meeting her eyes.

“Only a little,” Leela added. “Narvin looked so serious about offering me this… _jumper_ that I could not refuse.”

Romana looked between them. Their explanations offered little to clear up the confusion. Narvin being considerate? Leela accepting his help? Had they fallen into some kind of strange alternate reality?

“Where have you two been all day?” Braxiatel asked with an amused smirk.

Though it was dark, Romana could still see Narvin’s face darken with colour. Before he could say a word, Leela replied first.

“Narvin went on a rollercoaster!”

Brax laughed. Romana shook her head. Narvin had gone on a rollercoaster with Leela? It was like they’d become the best of friends within mere hours.

“They’re rather enjoyable when you aren’t being tossed around within an inch of your life,” Narvin said.

Before Romana could puzzle about it any further, strains of overly cheerful music sounded over the speakers.

“It’s starting!” Brax said, turning back towards the water. Leela came to stand beside Romana, leaning against the railing.

“What is starting?” she asked.

Brax hushed her as the music swelled. Leela rolled her eyes.

Then it struck Romana: Leela and fireworks probably wouldn’t mix well. She glanced out at the island where the fireworks awaited; they’d go off any minute.

“Leela,” Romana started hurriedly in a whisper, “they’re called fireworks. They’re going to be loud and—”

Too late. One went off with a loud bang that echoed through the atmosphere and sent bright sparks of red and yellow glittering in the sky. Leela jumped and cried out, reaching where her knife should have been.

“We are being attacked?”

“No!” Romana grabbed her arm to stop her from doing anything rash. She calmed down, her muscles relaxing as she met Romana’s eyes. “They may make a lot of noise, but they’re only meant to look nice.”

Leela started, involuntarily it seemed, as another firework went off and cast a spray of brilliant blue into the night sky. Leela's eyes widened.

“It is like…coloured fire.” A small smile lit up her face. “There were people in my tribe who claimed they could do magic; they would change the colour of the fire and the smoke. I liked to watch them practise when I was a child.” She paused, then continued in a softer voice, “I did not remember that until now.”

Romana slowly let go of her, seeing that Leela had settled once again.

“This looks extremely unsafe,” Narvin muttered on the other side of Leela, cringing as more fireworks were launched.

“Nonsense,” Brax said, leaning over the railing so that he could meet Narvin’s eyes. “Just relax and enjoy it, Narvin.”

Some kind of silent communication seemed to pass between them. Narvin’s lips thinned out and he stubbornly turned his gaze back to the water.

“Why do you always have to stir him up?” Romana muttered.

“Forgive me, my lady, but it is rather fun.”

She really shouldn’t approve, and she didn’t, really…but she didn’t disapprove, either.

She glanced over at Leela and saw that she was now excitedly pointing out the patterns and colours in the fireworks as they went off. Narvin looked much calmer than he had a moment ago.

Romana inched closer to Braxiatel so she wouldn’t be overheard when she whispered, “What do you make of Leela and Narvin?”

Braxiatel quirked an eyebrow, casting a look in their direction. “I’ve never known Narvin to be so…chivalrous.”

“And I’ve never known Leela to tolerate him so much.” Romana met Brax’s eyes for an instant. He was thinking the same thing she was…but she was still fairly sure that was impossible.

The fireworks went on a few minutes longer, painting brilliant shades of colour against the dark sky. The reflections in the water added another dimension too; it had all been done very cleverly. When the music died down and it was finally over, Romana’s hearts sunk.

Brax announced it was time for them to go. As Romana looked over their little group, she considered what an interesting day it had been. When they’d arrived, the only one who had been eager about the trip was Brax. Now, Leela and Narvin looked just as saddened to leave as Romana felt.

“Well,” Romana said as they started towards the exit, “I must admit, Brax, that this was much more enjoyable than I anticipated.”

“It wasn’t as bad as I’d thought it would be,” Narvin admitted, “but I can’t say I’d ever choose to come to one of these places again.”

“There should be rollercoasters on Gallifrey,” Leela observed.

All three of the time lords laughed.

“Can you imagine,” Narvin said, slightly breathless, “members of the High Council riding on one of those?”

Romana couldn’t help the laughter that burst forth at the thought.

Leela started laughing too, then managed to say, “Or Darkel!” in between fits of giggles.

And somehow, a day that had begun with arguments and jibes ended only in laughter.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm so sad that this fic is over, it made me kind of emotional to finish it for some reason XD I hope you enjoyed, and thank you so much for reading!!


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